Virus-imprinted nanoparticle molds may be used to detect, remove viral infections.

Biology and nanotechnology are moving ever closer together. Ars recently wrote about the use of nanoparticles to aid delivery of stem cells in cardiac therapy. Now, Swiss researchers have developed nanoparticles that can detect, and one day could combat, viruses.

When viruses enter the human body, the immune system responds to their presence. This triggers a sophisticated chain of events that leads to production of antibodies specific to the virus. Depending on the swiftness and effectiveness of the response, there are usually three possibilities: viruses are eliminated before they cause damage, they are eliminated after the person suffers a bout of sickness, or, in the worst case scenario, the virus spreads uncontrolled.

One option for combating viral infections is to develop “artificial” antibodies. These antibodies can have two uses: they can be used to detect infections and, if produced at large enough scale, they can be used to combat infections.

That’s what Patrick Shahgaldian and his colleagues at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland have been working on. Their solution is relatively simple. Find the virus that causes infection; imprint copies of it on a nanoparticle; then use this “mold” to trap the virus.

There are several steps to creating the imprinted nanoparticle. Step one involves sticking the virus on a silica nanoparticle (SNP) using binding chemicals. (Just to be clear, these binding chemicals are too toxic to be used in the body.) In step two, the SNP is coated with a layer of polymer (organosiloxane). Next, the “virus imprinted particle” (VIP) is subjected to ultrasound which dislodges the virus.

After optimizing the thickness of the polymer layer, Shahgaldian and his team tested these VIPs in a virus-infected solution of human blood serum. After 30 minutes of exposure to the VIPs, they found that they were able to trap up to 88 percent of all viruses even at very low (65 picomolar, or 10^-12) concentration. Their effectiveness in clearing a virus-containing water solution was even higher.

According to Shahgaldian, these VIPs will be first used as a diagnostic tool—expose humans to a small amount of VIPs, and then find out if any of them contain trapped viruses. Of course, clinical trials will be needed to find out if it is safe to inject so many nanoparticles at once.

The next step, says Shahgaldian, is to use VIPs for therapy. But that will require additional developments, like mass manufacturing of these nanoparticles. If it were to be used to fight a new strain of virus, like the coronavirus that’s making many nervous, then a method that will produce these artificial antibodies quickly and at a large scale will be needed.

Amazing that this works without any ion shaping of the polymer. Perhaps the polymer takes on the electric field properties necessary during the deposition but without it the probabilities of the virus orienting themselves "just so" to get trapped seems small.

Any discussion in the paper about the selectivity? Just what else was captured on accident?

Color me hopelessly optimistic, but I firmly believe that viral manipulation will be the eventual key to immortality. (Which none of us will live to see -but is on the horizon.Don't get me going as to why. I don't have the energy.

I can't get at the original article, but I didn't see anything about the VIPs actually destroying the target virus, rather than simply binding them. That seems like the next step that's needed, since even if you reduce the viral load in the blood, any that's free can still multiply, and it seems like you'll eventually just saturate. Doesn't matter in a diagnostic tool, but maybe a problem with the longer-term therapeutic goal. Some sort of immobilized enzyme on the nanoparticle that can dismember the virus, allowing the bits to dissociate and freeing up the VIP for another cycle seems about right.

I can't get at the original article, but I didn't see anything about the VIPs actually destroying the target virus, rather than simply binding them. That seems like the next step that's needed, since even if you reduce the viral load in the blood, any that's free can still multiply, and it seems like you'll eventually just saturate. Doesn't matter in a diagnostic tool, but maybe a problem with the longer-term therapeutic goal. Some sort of immobilized enzyme on the nanoparticle that can dismember the virus, allowing the bits to dissociate and freeing up the VIP for another cycle seems about right.

Well, the equivalent of dialysis might be enough to bring virus loads to a level the immune system can handle. You can burn the plates or if you want to reuse them find some way to strip the virus out of their molds. Since it's done ex-vitro that stripping process does not need to be tissue friendly.

Color me hopelessly optimistic, but I firmly believe that viral manipulation will be the eventual key to immortality. (Which none of us will live to see -but is on the horizon.Don't get me going as to why. I don't have the energy.

We might not see immortality within our lifetimes, but there are definitely some exciting developments in that area. But you're right that most of us probably won't see those developments, as most of us wouldn't be able to afford treatment of that nature.

I can't get at the original article, but I didn't see anything about the VIPs actually destroying the target virus, rather than simply binding them. That seems like the next step that's needed, since even if you reduce the viral load in the blood, any that's free can still multiply, and it seems like you'll eventually just saturate. Doesn't matter in a diagnostic tool, but maybe a problem with the longer-term therapeutic goal. Some sort of immobilized enzyme on the nanoparticle that can dismember the virus, allowing the bits to dissociate and freeing up the VIP for another cycle seems about right.

Well, the equivalent of dialysis might be enough to bring virus loads to a level the immune system can handle. You can burn the plates or if you want to reuse them find some way to strip the virus out of their molds. Since it's done ex-vitro that stripping process does not need to be tissue friendly.

That was my thought too. Dialysis type of setup should be able to clean out a lot of the virus out of the bloodstream and should be easier to reuse since you can easily ultrasonicate the imprints without any issue unlike when it's inside the body.

With 9 billion people on the planet, I imagine viruses like those are going to have a field day. And we'll need better methods of fighting them (aka not antibiotics). It'll probably involve several scientific disciplines, from the mechanical (nano-tech) to the biological (understanding our own biota). Thankfully, there is a lot of room for progress to be made in both areas.

With 9 billion people on the planet, I imagine viruses like those are going to have a field day. And we'll need better methods of fighting them (aka not antibiotics). It'll probably involve several scientific disciplines, from the mechanical (nano-tech) to the biological (understanding our own biota). Thankfully, there is a lot of room for progress to be made in both areas.

You realize antibiotics don't fight viruses at all?

Our virus fighting tools are amongst the most primitive in medical science.

Neat stuff. Seems most every day there's news of new discoveries, ideas, proto-tech, and so on. Almost enough to give one hope.

Oddly enough, a few months back I remarked to a friend that the 21st century will be one of nano-, neuro-, and geno-, and that the 'marriage' of the three will transform both the possibilities and the realities of life as we know it.

It'd also help if we'd stop considering our situation as a zero-sum game.

In vitro makes more sense for initial detection as well. We have a long way to go before nanoparticles are used in vivo. Especially since many of generic forms has turned out to block cellular functions. (Cf asbestos.)

Molecular molds have many medical uses. Purifying medicines are one. Since some early medicines were racemic, and that gets you into side effects, I would guess it may make some production cheaper.

Immortality? No lifeform has achieved that in 4 billion years, even bacteria dies of ageing end caps (damaged proteins and genetic strands) after a few hundred divisions. Clonal or clonal like (shell growing) organisms doesn't really count when you have a neural system.

But practical immortality from sufficient longevity could perhaps be achieved. At least mice have neurons that as a cell population lives twice as long as other somatic cells. Why neurons are over-engineered is difficult to say, but brain tissue is privileged in many ways including immuno privilege. If this is also true for humans, the maximal vertebrate lifetimes of 2 centuries seems understandable and may be achievable.

From a system perspective, at the age of 20 we hit a body plan lifetime of about 2 millenniums. (About 1 in 2000 death rate.) That is likely about the maximum for a vertebrate (brainy) body plan, even if you engineer in backup hearts et cetera.

But how to get an order of magnitude more lifetime from the current biological machinery wear and tear of about 2 centuries is not even on the horizon. Trying to patch in more mechanisms in the already crowded cell biochemistry would soon hit diminishing returns.

Revitalizing stem cells may be the way forward though, working on the cellular level instead, sorting against mutations and what not. You need 10 gens of 200 years cells, which should be feasible, except for skin and colon wearable layers where you won't care about mutations if you manage it well.

Hopefully a couple of centuries will look close enough to immortality (boredom) to not matter much, while still leaving the population open for evolution.

Think how wrinkly and haggard everyone will be. Not that looks are the only thing of course, don't get me wrong but there will surely be an even bigger market for plastic surgery if that pans out (either that or they figure out how to actually slow aging on the body and whatnot).

Longer lives with less vriuses perhaps, but to claim immortality just seems silly to me.

Think how wrinkly and haggard everyone will be. Not that looks are the only thing of course, don't get me wrong but there will surely be an even bigger market for plastic surgery if that pans out (either that or they figure out how to actually slow aging on the body and whatnot).

Longer lives with less vriuses perhaps, but to claim immortality just seems silly to me.

Don't worry. There will never be a cure for the stupids, and that claims more lives than anything.

Color me hopelessly optimistic, but I firmly believe that viral manipulation will be the eventual key to immortality. (Which none of us will live to see -but is on the horizon.Don't get me going as to why. I don't have the energy.

I wouldn't say "none of us". It is currently thought that not dying of disease or natural causes will be solved soon(tm). Like very potentially useful for currently alive people.

Think how wrinkly and haggard everyone will be. Not that looks are the only thing of course, don't get me wrong but there will surely be an even bigger market for plastic surgery if that pans out (either that or they figure out how to actually slow aging on the body and whatnot).

Longer lives with less vriuses perhaps, but to claim immortality just seems silly to me.

Don't worry. There will never be a cure for the stupids, and that claims more lives than anything.

As long as there will be extreme sports and idiots telling their friends "Hey are you filming this?" there will still be death.

Virus-imprinted nanoparticle molds may be used to direct viral infections in the enemies of America.

Fixed. Sadly this is likely what will happen, "ban on biological warfare" be damned. After all, we commit assassinations, cyber-terrorism, and more on other nations. What's to stop us from doing this too?

I see the time in the not so far future where the difference between taking medication for your whole life to attenuate a chronic viral infection and getting the treatment for a complete cure is how much money is in your bank account. Repo Men much?